THE UNIVERSAL EXTENSION OF MESSIAH’S KINGDOM. 


SERMON, 


DELIVERED IN THE 
NORTH CHURCH, NEW-HAVEN, CON. SEPT. 12, 1822, 


BEFORE THE 


AMERICAN BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS 


FOR 


FOREIGN MISSION S, 
er” 
jor tnt” 


THIRTEENTH ANNUAL MEETING. 


BY ALEXANDER PROUDFIT, D. D. 


Men shall be blessed in him; all nations shall call him blessed.— Psalm Isxxii, 17. 


BOSTON: 
CROCKER & BREWSTER, NO. 50, CORNAILL. 
1822. 


ye 
r4 


be 


SERMON. 


MALACHI i, 11. 
For from the rising of the sun, even unto the going 
down of the same, my name shall be great among 
the gentiles. 


Ir is the ordinary arrangement of Jehovah to accom- 
plish his purposes by the instrumentality of secon- 
dary causes; it is also his usual arrangement to accom- 
plish these purposes by slow degrees. Rarely does 
any object in the physical, or intellectual, or spiritual 
world, reach the full perfection of its nature without 
the lapse of considerable time. The natural seed, 
the particle of wheat, or of corn, does not attain to 
maturity immediately after being deposited in the 
earth, but is making gradual progress for days, and 
weeks, and months. It presents to the eye first the 
blade, then the ear, as an earnest in due season of the 
full corn in the ear. The intellectual principle in man, 
like the members of his body, ordinarily attains its 
utmost vigour through a long continued progress. As 
much cultivation is requisite, much time must also 
elapse, before his powers evolve, and the faculties of 
the infant arrive at the perfect maturity of manhood. 
The full-orbed day does not burst upon the world 


4 


with the earliest perceptible dawn of the morning. 
A few solitary rays of light first appear, afterwards 
a brighter radiance becomes visible, and these in due 
season are succeeded by the full splendours of noon. 
The Creator of the world did not execute, his great 
work of creation in an instant, or an hour. ‘That 
vast edifice, which he could have completed in a mo- 
ment, with as much facility as in an age, he was car- 
rying on, by successive steps, for several days: And 
it is worthy of notice that, in his ordinary dispensa- 
tions, the more interesting and magnificent the 
scheme, which a sovereign God designs to accom- 
plish, the more slow is the progress, by which he 
advances it to its final consummation. What a long 
succession of ages, for instance, intervened between 
the disclosure of the promise in paradise relative to 
Messiah, and its actual completion in his birth, and 
sufferings, and death, and resurrection. Such has 
eminently been the divme procedure, with respect to 
the diffusion of the Gospel among the nations of the 
earth. Nearly six thousand years have revolved, 
since the standard of Jesus the Saviour was erected, 
and the foundation of his spiritual kingdom com- 
menced, in our world; and yet how comparatively 
limited is the sphere, over which it has extended; 
how often has its progress been impeded, and, to hu- 
man appearance, its very existence endangered. But 
amidst all the intrigue of false friends, and the 
opposition of the unmasked enemies of the cross, 
this kingdom 1s gradually enlarging its boundaries: It 
shail ultimately become. co-extensive with the limits 
of the earth, and comprehend, as its voluntary sub- 
jects, all the nations of men;—*for,” saith the Lord 


4) 


God, “from the rising of the sun, even unto the going 
down of the same, my name shall be great among the 
gentiles.” 

The imagery employed by the inspired prophet, is 
sublime and interesting beyond conception. We paint 
in our imaginations the sun, the Prince of day, rising 
in the east, advancing irresistibly in the path pre- 
scribed for him, and visiting, in his majestic march, 
the remotest boundaries of the earth; so shall that 
Gospel, which brings to light iminoriality and life, dil- 
fuse its radiance over all the kindreds of mankind; it 
shall, like the natural sun, its illustrious emblem, illu- 
mine and gladden, in its career, the inhabitants of 
every region under heaven. There is another truth 
probably suggested by the prophet, that as the spir- 
itual light, like the natural, shall be universally dif- 
fused, so the course of the one shall correspond to 
the course of the other. 

It is no novel remark that the progress of the 
Gospel, this great moral luminary, has been usually 
toward the west. In the east, the first ray of hope 
beamed upon our world, in the annunciation of a Say- 
iour; and since that period, the knowledge of his sal- 
vation has been gradually spreading to the west, in 
the increase and dispersion of the human family. In 
the east the true light again burst forth in the call of 
Abraham, the father of the faithful, and afterward 
extended towards the west, in the journeyings of 
Isaac, and Jacob, and their numerous offspring. And 
it is comparatively but a few years since the light of 
life shone upon this western hemisphere, in the mi- 
gration of our venerable ancestors from England, and 
Scotland, and Holland, and other countries of Europe. 


6 


Without making any formal division of this subject, 
I would respectfully invite your attention to the im- 
port of the name of Jehovah; to the assurances afford- 
ed us that this name shall become great over the 
whole earth; and to the principal means, by which 
the knowledge of the divine name will probably be 
propagated among the nations. 

JVames, in their usual acceptation, are terms of dis- 
tinction. By the application of these, man is distin- 
guished from man. The name of God may, therefore, 
with propriety be considered as comprehending every 
thing, by which he is made known; every outward, 
visible display, by which his being, and perfections, 
and glory, are brought more clearly to the view of 
his rational creatures. 

This material world which we occupy, is his name; 
it affords an obvious and luminous exhibition of the — 
existence and attributes of its Creator. What wis- 
dom, what munificence, what might, what majesty 
shine forth in all his works; in their measureless im- 
mensity, and almost infinite variety. What various” 
forms and properties characterize mattet merely in- 
animate; and what various propensities and capacities 
appear in all that is animated or rational. What 
difference of dimension between the little atom, 
which floats almost invisible in the air, and that sun, 
which marches majestic in the heavens, enlightening 
and enlivening the whole system. How immensely 
different is the physical strength of the insect, which 
moves unseen upon the earth, and that of the ox or 
the elephant; and how far inferior are the intellectual 
capacities of some of the human family, who still rank 
in the order of rational beings, to those of the seraph 


7 

er cherub, whose residence is near to the throne of 
Jehovah, and from whom is reflected no inconsiderable 
semblance of his perfections and glory. If we admire 
the artist, who executes upon canvass the likeness of 
another, when the original form is exhibited immedi- 
ately before him; or the architect, who rears an edi- 
fice, when the materials from which it is framed, and 
the implements with which it is constructed, are fur- 
nished to his hand; what must be our conceptions of 
the perfections of that Being, who originally gave ex- 
istence to matter, and at a single word could create 
this world, with the infinite variety and magnificence 
of its furniture. The heavens declare the glory of God, 
reflecting upon the eye of every intelligent beholder, 
his wisdom, and power, and immensity; and the firma- 
ment showeth forth his hand work. There is no speech 
nor language where their voice is not heard; they have 
carried conviction into the bosom of the most rude, 
illiterate inhabitant of our globe, that there is a God. 
The human mind, after losing just apprehensions of 
the divine Being, has regarded these luminaries of 
heaven as divinities, and offered homage to them 
as such. Some nations have worshipped the sun, oth- 
ers the moon, and others the stars, as their deities. 

The regular revolutions of the seasons, and the ex- 
traordinary phenomena of nature which occasionally 
appear, may also be considered as the name of Jeho- 
vah; they are constant and impressive displays of his 
perfections and glory. The sun rising in the east, 
morning after morning, imparting in his course light 
and joy to every thing that hath being; the genial 
showers of spring, which descend softening the earth 
and reammating the vegetable world after the decay 


of winter; the lightning, which cleaves, in an instant, 
the loftiest cedar; or the hurricane, whose proud 
march prostrates with resistless force every nterven- 
ing object: “these in their turn are but the varied 
God;” they are ever new exhibitions of his goodness, 
and omnipotence, and grandeur. While he contem- 
plates these vicissitudes of the seasons, the royal po- 
et kindles into rapture and exclaims, Day unto day ut- 
tereth specch and night unto night showeth forth knowl- 
edge; and viewing the more awful visitations of the 
Almighty, in the occurrences of providence, he adds, 
The voice of the Lord is full of majesty, the God of glory 
thundereth, the voice of the Lord shaketh. the cedars, yea, 
the Lord shaketh the cedars of Lebanon. The Lord 
sitteth upon the floods, yea, the Lord sitteth king forever. 

But there is another interposition of Jehovah, in 
which his name is inscribed in characters still more 
legible, and from which his glory is reflected with a 
lustre more visible and commanding; the redemption 
of our world through the degradation and death of 
his own Son. This is the name, to which the prophet 
more immediately alludes in the passage before us. 
This dispensation of God is in Scripture emphatically 
called his name, his way, the mystery of his will, the 
riches of his glory, the depth of the riches—both of his 
wisdom and power, because in it there is a manifesta- 
tion not merely of one perfection, but of all his per- 
fections, collectively, which he has been pleased to 
afford in no other interposition. His wisdom, in the 
constitution of Messiah’s person, by whom this re- 
demption was accomplished, bringing into a union the 
most intimate natures essentially and infinitely differ- 
ent; his sovereignty, in the restoration of man, while 


9 


sinning angels were passed by; in selecting this earth, 
although degraded by sin, as the theatre on which 
the wonders of his love should be exhibited, rather 
than any other part of his immeasurable empire; in 
restoring a portion of the human family, while they 
were all equally involved in rebellion against their 
rightful prince; in restoring this portion not merely to 
the friendship, but also to the most intimate fellow- 
ship of their offended Sovereign; in advancing them 
to immunities more exalted than man had enjoyed in 
his primitive state, or even angels participate, who re- 
mained loyal to the Eternal King; in bringing the fa- 
voured objects of redemption to the possession of all 
these privileges in perfect consistence with the hon- 
ours of his government, and without the possibility of 
future forfeiture; in effecting this recovery by the 
death of another in their room, by the death even of 
the Prince of life, the Lord of glory, his own co-equal, 
co-eternal Son; these are manifestations of wisdom, 
and condescension, and sovereignty, which surpass, in 
importance and majesty, all other manifestations; they . 
are mysteries, which will be forever unfolding, but 
never fully unfolded; the dimensions of which plan, the 
capacities of no created being, whether man, or angel, 
or archangel, are able to comprehend. | These things 
the angels desire to look into, and after they have pur- 
sued their researches through the lapse of ten thou- 
sand ages, they will ever be constrained to exclaim, 
How inconsiderable a part of its breadth, or length, or 
depth, or height, can be conceived! The results of this 
scheme now appear interesting, and through eternity 
will remain interesting, beyond the comprehension of 


our limited understandings. The very earth on 
2 


10 


which te reside, as the scene where sin was expia+ 
ted by the obedience and blood of the Prince of life, 
appears hallowed, and consecrated, and raised to the 
highest conceivable importance. ‘Towards it the eyes 
of all rational spectators, who throng the immense 
empire of God, are eagerly directed; and on this they 
gaze with delightful astomshment, as the theatre on 
which the Lord of glory veiled, in the frailties of man- 
hood, the uncreated glories of his Godhead: where, 
travelling in the greatness of his strength, he encounter- 
ed and spoiled principalities and powers, liberating from 
their usurped dominion, man, their insulted and de- 
graded captive; where, dying, he rose a conquerer, 
and established a kingdom broad, in its foundations, as 
the inhabited globe, and lasting, in its duration, as 
eternity. This earth, although inconsiderable ‘in its 
dimensions, compared with other planets and worlds, 
is probably frequented more by intelligences from 
different parts of the divine dominions, than any other 
spot inthe universe. Here principalities and powers 
in heavenly places frequently resort, and learn, through 
the church, the manifold wisdom of God. And perhaps 
it is not unwarrantably bold or presumptuous to con- 
jecture, that this earth, on which sin was expiated by 
the sacrifice of the Son of God, after being purified 
by fire at the consummation of time, will be selected 
as the theatre where the glories of the Godhead will 
eternally shed their brigheset radiance to the admira- 
tion of ali holy Beings throughout the universe, and 
where the favoured objects of divine mercy will be 
- admitted to the clearest vision, and most intimate fru- 
ition, of their Father and God. 


il 


This is the name of Jehovah which shall become great 
Jrom the rising to the setting of the sun: the dispensa- 
tion of his mercy, which is to be made known to ail 
the families of the earth; to be revealed for the eter- 
nal glory and happiness of all who acquiesce in it, and 
the endless perplexity and horror of those, who either 
reject or neglect it. 

But what assurances have we, that this Gospel af 
the kingdom shall be preached in all the world? This 
was proposed as the second subject of inquiry, and 
on this part of our discourse it is altogether unneces- 
sary to enlarge. The universal extension of the Re- * 
deemer’s kingdom, is taught by all the imagery under 
which it is represented in the Old Testament and the 
. New. It is compared to a little leaven, which leaven- 
eth the whole lump; to a grain of mustard seed, which, 
although the least of all seeds, becometh a tree, so that 
the fowls of the ar lodge in the branches thereof; toa 
stone cut out of the mountain without hands, which shall 
fill the whole earth, and stand forever. All this variety 
of emblem expresses the same elevating truth; it in- 
structs us that the Gospel shall yet be propagated 
through the whole earth; that its sound shall spread 
to the south, and to the west, and to the north, and 
to the east, until all the nations have seen its glory, and 
felt its regenerating and healing influence. 

The same interesting truth is obvious from all the 
characters, by which the Redeemer is set forth in 
the oracles of truth. He is denominated the Saviour 
of the world; the desire of all nations; a propitiation for 
the sins of the whole world; a light to lighten the Gen- 
tiles, and to be for salvation to the ends of the carth; 
and the event of his nativity was pronounced by the 


12 


heavenly messenger to be tidings of great joy to aun 
people. These and similar expressions do not imply, 
that all of every nation, or of any nation, shall partici- 
pate in the blessings of his salvation; but they do im- 
ply, that all kindreds of mankind shall hear the sound 
of his Gospel, and that some of every kindred shall 
believe in him and be saved by him. The standard 
of Messiah’s cross shall yet wave triumphant in every 
region of the earth, and some of every tribe of the 
human kind shall flock to it, and rally around it, and 
exult in it, as their shield, and consolation, and glory. 
This charter to the nations indiscriminately, as his 
inheritance, which had been given to the Saviour from 
eternity, he recognized in his appeal to his Father 
shortly before his decease at Jerusalem. Thou hast 
given him power over all flesh; thou hast delegated to 
him the exclusive administration of this lower world, © 
that he might give eternal life to as many as thou hast 
given him; that he might gather in, by the ministry of 
his Gospel, those of every nation formerly made over. 
to him as the reward of his humiliation and toil. 
Thus at the commencement of the present dispensa- 
tion, which was to be the last and most liberal and 
juminous dispensation of mercy to mankind, he unfolds 
this charter, and gives command and commission to 
his apostles to enter immediately upon its execution; 
go ye into all the world; “be circumscribed in your 
travels no longer by the little region of Palestine, but 
consider the circumference of the earth as the only 
boundaries of my kingdom, and consequently the only 
limit of your labours, and in going into all the world” 
preach the gospel to every creature; tell the nations that 
all dis tinction is now done away; that the partition 


13 


wall, which had stood for ages between the Jew and 
Gentile, is cloven in twain from the top to the bottom; 
and that the saved of all countries shall hereafter 
constitute one flock, under me their Shepherd; one 
family, under me their Father; one soldiery, under me 
their Captain and Prince. 


But how are the nations to be evangelized? How 
shall the idolatry of the pagan, and the delusions of 
the false prophet, and the superstition of the papal 
power be abolished; and their blinded votaries be 
brought submissive before the cross of the Saviour 
of the world? 

This is the last subject of inquiry, and the answer is 
as obvious, as the interrogatory is interesting. All 
this mighty conquest must be obtained, through the 
co-operating agency of the Lord the Spirit, by means; 
by means of the word, either read, or preached. The 
kingdom of Messiah was never extended, nor its tro- 
phies multiplied, by miracle. The administration of 
his covenant is wholly an administration of means. 
Of his own will he begets the individual by the word of 
truth, and of his own will shall the nations be convert- 
ed through the instrumentality of the same word of 
truth, the same Gospel of salvation. And, therefore, 
before the name of Jesus—Jehovah can become great, 
from the rising of the sun unto the going down of the 
same, the Scriptures must be translated into every 
language, and circulated through every land. It 
therefore cannot pass unnoticed that, in all ages, when 
any important work was to be accomplished in fayour 
of Zion, correspondent provisions were made prepara- 
tory tosucha work. Means answerable to the magni- 


14 


tude of the end were furnished; and, while the divine 
agency was visible, the necessity of diligence on the 
part of the church was not in the least degree super- 
seded. Previous to the enlargement of the spiritual 
kingdom, at the death and ascension of our Lord, the 
learning of the Greeks, by the subjugation of that 
power, was transferred into the hands of the Romans; 
the language of the former became the court language 
of the latter; and thus the Greek language, through 
the controlling imfluence of Rome, was adopted at 
the courts of the surrounding nations. About the 
same period, the Old Testament scriptures were 
translated by the Seventy into the Grecian language; 
the New Testament scriptures were written originally 
in the same language; and thus, through the agency 
of Him who worketh all things after the counsel of his 
own will, the sacred canon became accessible to the 
learned of different countries, and preparation was 
made for teaching all nations. How visibly did the 
Lord God again interpose for preparing the way for 
the enlargement of his church, at the commencement 
of the memorable Reformation! About that time, the 
virtue of the magnetic needle was discovered; the 
science of navigation was improved; the various arts 
were cultivated to a degree of perfection formerly 
unknown; different oceans were explored; other is- 
lands were found; and especially this continent, which 
we occupy, was discovered; and thus an Asylum was 
provided for the true church from the corruptions 
and persecutions of the old world. About the same 
time, the art of printing was invented; copies of the 
sacred Scriptures were multiplied; their price was sud- 
denly reduced; and thus the Bible, circulated through 


15 


different countries, and read by persons in all condi- 
tions of life, became a mighty engine for extending 
the boundaries of Zion. ‘The incorruptible seed, scat- 
tered around by the distribution of the word of life, 
took root, sprung up, and presented a liberal harvest 
to the glory of sovereign grace. 

But there is another and still more powerful means, 
by which the Gospel is to be diffused among the na- 
tions:—the preaching of the word of reconciliation. 
The Scriptures, translated and distributed, will prob- 
ably remain a dead letter, unless accompanied with 
the ministrations of the living teacher. Far be it 
from me to detract from the importance of Bible So- 
cieties, or to utter a remark, which might tend to re- 
lax the exertions of those who are engaged in the 
honorable work of diffusing the Scriptures. Let as- 
sociations of this character be formed; let copies of 
the sacred volume be multiplied; let them be dis- 
persed through every country; let them be conveyed 
into every house, and placed on the shelf of every 
habitation of mankind. Let all this be done with a 
zeal answerable to the unutterable importance of the 
work; yet I venture to assert, that it is by the preach- 
ing of men, enlightened, ardent, self-denied, disinter- 
ested men; by the preaching of such in a pre-eminent 
degree, that the nations are ultimately to be subdued 
to the obedience of faith. Without the evangelical, 
laborious pastor, how are the people to be collected 
from sabbath to sabbath; how are the Scriptures to 
be expounded and enforced; how are the denuncia- 
tions of the law to be brought home to the conscience 
for conviction, or the consolations of the promises to 
be conveyed to the despondent heart; how are the 


16 


seals of the covenant, these badges of Christian char- 
acter, and these mediums of Christian comfort and 
support, to be dispensed; in short, without the living 
ministry, how is the visible church to be organ- 
ized, or its privileges perpetuated, on the eartli? 
This challenge is confidently made, because it is 
founded on the Bible itself, and confirmed by the 
general history of Zion. Jt hath pleased God by the 
foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. 
Again, faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the 
word of God. Nay, so important, so indispensable is 
the ministry of reconciliation to the advancement of 
the Saviour’s kingdom on the earth, that the 
Apostle asks, as he looks abroad on the benighted 
nations, How shall they believe on him of whom they 
have not heard, and how shall they hear without a 
preacher? There is much instruction in the follow- 
ing declaration of our Lord, This Gospel of the king- 
den shall be preached + in all the world for a witness to 
all nations; that is, shall be propagated by preaching, 
and the New ‘Testament prophet, in foreseeing and 
foretelling the glory of the millennial day, also fore- 
saw and foretold the preaching of the cross, as the 
great means, by which this glory should be ushered 
upon the world. J saw, he asserts, J saw another an- 
gel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting 
Goinel to preach to them that dwell on the earth, and to 
every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people. 
These declarations of Scripture, are illustrated and 
supported by the history of the church in all past 
ages. Did we ever see the Gospel making any con- 
sidnenidle progress beyond the sphere actually occu- 
pied by the preacher of righteousness? Or, to vary 


17 


the expression, did we ever see men, in any consid- 
erable numbers, reconciled unto God, where the ambas- 
sador of Jesus did not appear to propose the over- 
tures of reconciliation? On the other hand, have we 
seen religion languish to any alarming degree, in its 
power, or form, where an able, evangelical, laborious 
ministry was enjoyed? How suddenly have the inter- 
ests of godliness revived in an age, or city, or vil- 
lage, upon the establishment of a man full of the Holy 
Ghost and of faith; and how suddenly has its glory 
withered, and even its form vanished, under the in- 
cumbrance of a man erroneous in principle, immoral 
in practice, or indolent and unfaithful m the discharge 
of the duties of his trust, who intruded himself under 
the mask of a minister of Christ! Israel, during the 
former dispensation, did not degenerate to any affect- 
ing degree, while their priests and the prophets com- 
bined their mfluence in stemming the torrent; while 
these messengers of the Lord of Hosts, regardless of 
popular flattery or frown, dared to lift up their vorces 
like a trumpet, exposing the iniquities which abound- 
ed; but how soon did the contagion become universal, 
when these, as rotten carcases, rolled aleng with the 
stream of corruption! At the introduction of the 
Christian economy, the labours of Apostles, and the 
limits of the Church, were nearly co-extensive; the 
triumphs of the cross were usually multiplied only 
where the soldier of Jesus extended his march, and, 
with the armour of God, made his invasion upon the 
empire of darkness. The disciples went forth, says 
the sacred historian, and preached every where, the 
Lord working with them, and confirming the word with 
signs following. The importance of the living min- 


18 


istry for the success of Christianity, is no less obvious 
from the history of the Reformation. A Wickliff 
in England, a Zuinglius in Germany, a Jerome in 
Prague, were instrumental, by their instructions and 
examples, in the partial illumination of the regions, 
where they respectively arose; and humanly speak- 
ing it wanted only the increase and succession of such 
lights, to have dissipated that sullen darkness, which 
had so long enveloped the world; but in their age, or 
in the following ages, where was there a reformation 
in religion, without the exertions of some adyentur- 
ous, zealous reformer? and J am fully persuaded, that 
all our success in attempting to evangelize the hea- 
then will depend, ~under God, on the number, the 
ability, the prudence, and patience, and perseverance, 
of our missionaries. As a friend to the prosperity of 
my Master’s cause, and to the souls of those unnum- 
bered millions, who are perishing without vision, a 
long to see a host of scribes well instructed in the mys- 
teries of the kingdom, coming forward to be employed 
as Evangelists,—men who are humble, and holy; mor- 
tified to themselves; mortified also to the world, in ifs 
gain, and gratifications, and glory; who are ready to 
endure any difficulty, to encounter any danger, and to 
resist any temptation, which the flesh, or the devil, or 
the world, may offer for the purpose of alluring or ap- 
palling them; men to whom the honour of Jesus, and 
the salvation of fellow immortals, are dearer, beyond 
comparison, than houses, or lands, or father, or mother, 
or sisters, or brethren; men who need not be sought 
after by missionary societies, but, fired by a zeal too 
ardent to be repressed, or extinguished, like apostles 
offer themselves spontaneously to the work. 


19 


Are there none such in this large, and highly culti- 
vated, and Christian assembly? Is there not one, are 
there not ten, are there not twenty generous youth, 
willing to offer in sacrifice every secular interest on 
the altar of love to the Saviour, and in compassion 
to miserable pagans; and to go forth as the first frutts 
of this Board, to some region hitherto unexplored by 
the spiritual pioneer? Tevok for a moment, beloved 
youth, ye who were early devoted to Jesus in bap- 
tism, whose intellectual powers have been improved 
by the advantages of education, and on whom the 
Holy Ghost has savingly descended, regenerating, and 
expanding, and purifying; look abroad, and behold the 
countless multitudes of “fellow mortals and immortals, 
who have never seen a Bible; who have never enter- 
ed the peaceful sanctuary; who have never heard of 
the redemption of the cross; whose consciences are 
often cloven with a sense of guilt, but know nothing 
of that crimson laver, which speaks pardon and peace; 
who are stripped of that robe of innocence, which 
once adorned the nature of man, but remain ignorant 
of that garment of salvation, which the fer of 
sinners has provided; who have forfeited by the diso- 
bedience of the first Adam, their title to the inherit- 
ance of heaven, but have never enjoyed the offer of 
an unalienable title to a nobler inheritance, through 
the ohedience and blood of the second Adam, the Lord 
from heaven. What! is there bread to spare in the 
spiritual family, and shall these our brethren be per- 
mitted, through our neglect, to perish with hunger? 
Is there balm in Gilead, is there a remedy provided in 
the Gospel, and shall we suffer them to languish and 
die an eternal prey to the disease of sin! Is there 


20 


liberty proclaimed through the merit of the Saviour’s 
sacrifice, liberty for the lawful captive, and must they, 
through our apathy or indolence, be doomed to the 
torturing of everlasting chains! I appeal to you, gen- 
erous youth, while you contemplate this spectacle of 
degradation and wo, does not the kindly emotion of 
sympathy begin to swell your bosoms, and the tear of 
compassion burst involuntarily from your eyes? Actu- 
ated by the same spirit are you not ready to exclaim, 
each for himself, with the seraphic Isaiah, Lord Jesus, 
Here am I, send me. I will endure all things, that those, 
who have hitherto lived without God in the world, may 
obtain salvation through thy name. 

Do your hearts beat high with ardour to step for- 
ward in this sacred, most benevolent enterprize? We 
would willingly cherish the rising flame, and promise 
you the right hand of fellowship; we will assign you a 
rank in the Christian camp far superior to our own, 
and acknowledge you entitled to brighter honours in 
the heavenly world; we will pledge ourselves to afford 
you a liberal support with our secular substance; we 
will give you our parting benediction, and soften this 
benediction with our tears; while, in going to your 
place of destination, you explore the desert, or roll 
on the billows of the deep, we will commend you in 
our meditations to that Redeeming angel, whom the 
winds and the waves obey; after you have reached 
the missionary station, and begin to tell the roving 
savage that the Father sent has Son to be the Saviour of 
ithe world; that he is no respecter of persons, but im 
every nation he that feareth God and worketh righteous- 
ness 1s accepted with him; we will accompany your | 
instructions with our prayers; every convert to the 


21 


faith of the Gospel, which is made through the in- 
strumentality of your exertions, we will hail as your 
future glory and joy; and should our days of labour on 
earth be numbered before yours, we hope to receive 
you with open arms into everlasting habitations. 

Although I have passed what may be considered 
the meridian of human life, yet I can freely repeat 
an assertion, made nearly twenty-six years since, on a 
similar occasion, that if the Captain of the Lord’s hosts 
were not apparently calling me to remain in the sta- 
tion which I now occupy, I should be eager to appear 
among the first in pressing to that standard, which is 
now waving for an accession of soldiers; I should 
deem it a glory to march foremost for taking posses- 
sion of some new missionary station under the auspi- 
ces of this Board, and the pavilion of the Angel of the 
covenant. 

Is such our assurance, that this Gospel of the king- 
dom shall be preached in all the world, and are such the 
means of its diffusion? No arguments can be necessa- 
ry for urging us to persevere, with an augmenting 
ardour, in hastening on this grand consummation. The 
path of duty is both obvious and unobstructed. We 
have the command of the living God, as our authority; 
we have the promise of his perpetual presence and 
support, as our encouragement; we have the contract 
between the co-equal Father and Son, ratified in the 
counsels of peace, that all the kindreds of the nations 
shall worship before him, as our security for success; 
and we have the prospect of a crown incorrupt- 
ible, and a seat with our Master upon his throne, as 
the prize suspended at the end of our course. Let all 
therefore aim at arousing their own souls to a nobler 


22 


activity in this cause, which must be pronounced the 
most honourable and interesting, to which the energies 
of the man, or of the Christian, can be directed. Let 
them become more fervent in that supplication, which 
~was uttered nearly three thousand years since, and 
has been repeated by the friends of Zion in every in- 
tervening age, may thy way, O God, be known upon earth, 
and thy saving health among all nations. Let them be 
more cheerful in the consecration of their temporal 
treasures for the execution of every scheme, which 
has for its object the glory of Jesus in the wider spread 
of the radiance of his Gospel; let each appear more 
importunate, expostulating with others to throw their 
prayers and their property into the common fund. 
Let the sacred flame be thus communicated from 
heart to heart, and from house to house, and from 
country to country, until the redeemed of all kindreds, 
and colours, and climes, become of one heart and of one 
soul in diffusing the knowledge of him, who is the de- 
sire of all nations. To us who constitute the mem- 
bers of this Board, the voice of the Lord God of 
gods is awfully imperative and impressive, to work 
white it is day. ‘To all the admonitions of his word, 
He is giving loud and repeated admonitions 1 in his 
Providence, “todo with our might whatever we de- 
sign to do for the conversion of the heathen.” How 
many seats in our little circle have been vacated, with- 
in the lapse of a few years; and what a large propor- 
tion of our beloved and revered associates are gone! 
In vain, at the recurrence of our annual meeting, do 
we look around these walls for a Spring, a Payson, a 

Dwight, a Huntington, an Appleton, or a Worcester; 
we are no longer enlivened by their countenances, nor 


25 


enlightened and animated by their counsels and 
prayers. Their bodies now rest in the grave from 
the labours of life, and their immortal spirits have 
taken their flight to the invisible world, we trust to 
the regions of everlasting day; and could they speak 
down to us this evening from their high seats in the 
climes of bliss, they would urge us with united voices 
to abound more uniformly in the work of the Lord; 
they would probably tell us, that it is the repreach 
of the Christian church, that Jesus, the heir of all 
things, has yet received only a small part of his medi- 
atorial right; that, owing to the lethargy of his fol- 
lowers, a very inconsiderable section of the earth can 
be considered as his inheritance, and a small propor- 
tion of its immense population is his in actual posses- 
sion; they would tell us that Jews, and also Mahome- 
tans, and heathen, are going down in multitudes from 
hour to hour, to the abodes of eternal death, and 
that our period of exertion for their salvation must 
soon cease forever; they would probably intreat us 
not to be disheartened by all the toil or disappoint- 
ment, which we experience in the labours of life; that 
the vision of the countenance of the lovely Saviour 
for a single moment in the light of celestial glory, 
would overbalance all the trials of this world; that 
there is no language of man or Angel, that can de- 
scribe the thousandth part of his love or loveliness, 
or express the delights of that river of life, which rolls 
everlastingly at his right hand! 

The signs of the times are still becoming more aus- 
picious, and the prospect brightens, as we advance 
from year to year, that the earth will ere long be full 
of the knowledge of Jehovah. Probably there never was 


24 


a moment whensuch a combination of events occurred 
to elevate the hearts of the righteous; and encourage 
them to persevere in their efforts for extending the 
Redeemer’s kingdom. While prophecies, luminous 
and innumerable, assure us, that from the rising of the 
sun even unto the going down of the same, his name shall 
be great, every movement of his Providence inspires a 
hope, that the period for their completion is at hand. 
Denominations of Christians, which had long stood 
‘aloof from each other, are now uniting their counsels 
and prayers and treasures for the advancement of the 
same general cause. Every art is now improved; 
every science is cultivated with more than ordinary 
attention and success: and it isa consideration, which 
renders this fact more favourable to the prosperity of 
Zion, that the arts, and the sciences thus improved, 
are consecrated to the best interests of man; to the 
elevation of his intellectual and moral character in this 
world, and for promoting his eternal honour and hap- 
piness in the next; nations, for ages hostile to each oth- 
er, are now living in perfect harmony and peace. The 
intimate intercourse, which is maintamed between the 
inhabitants of different and distant countries, is opening 
a thousand avenues for the distribution of that Gospel, 
which proclaims good will to men; and, as the path on 
the ocean is at present unobstructed, an opportunity 
isafforded for wafting the missionaries of the cross to 
the shores of ‘every country. Modes of education 
are introduced, by which labour is lessened to the 
teacher, and knowledge may be acquired with greater 
facility, on the part of the scholar. By the institution 
of Sabbath schools in almost every part of the reli- 
gious world, multitudes, formerly enveloped in igno- 


ae 


29 


rance, or plunged in the lowest vices, are both, in- 
structed: and reclaimed; and thus many, who would 
probably have been diffusing around them the, conta- 
gion, of moral, disease pane death, are now rendered 
oruaments to the church; and in the relation of parents, 
or masters,.or, ministers, or, magistrates, may become 
instrumental in; propagating...religion .and_ learning 
to succeeding generations. , Tia may ‘be considered 
signs in our time, that, the mountain of the. Lord’s 

house, 1s shortly to, be established on,the top of the moun- 
tains, and to be exalted above the hills, and. that all nations 
shall flow untoit. All this stupendous and complicat- 
ed machinery, which has been matured with.so much 
wisdom, and has been rolling on from yearito year 
with an accelerating motion, cannot. be suddenly ar- 
rested. The zeal of the Lord of hosts for the accom- 
plishment of his eternal designs, hath commenced the 
work, and the same zeal will performit... From evy- 
ery Tract Society, from every Moral: Society, from 
every Missionary Society, from,every Bible Society, 
from every Sabbath School Society, from every Soci- 
ety instituted for the education of meritorious, youth 
for the Ministry, some rays are emitted, which,.con- 
centrating, will constitute the morning of that day of 
glory, which has been so often predicted and promis- 
ed from the foundation of the world:. And great, inef- 
fably and eternally great, will be their. honours,.who 


are most active in ushering. it in. Near to confessors, 


and reformers, and prophets, and apostles, will, be 
their seat with the Mediator upon.his throne..and 


bright will be those crowns; which thay shall,receiye, 
in the kingdom of their Father. 
. 4 


: 


26 


O fellow Christians, what joy inexpressible does it 
inspire, to look abroad not merely over this hemisphere, 
but over the world, and anticipate that moral change, 
_ which shall hereafter be effected! When we see eve- 
ry continent, and every isle, which has been marked 
by the foot of man, hallowed by the pure worship of 
our God; when we see the olive branch of peace 
blossoming where the purple banner had been for- 
merly unfurled; and the harsh thunder of war suc- 
ceeded by the soft acclamations of praise; when we 
see every settlement adorned with a sanctuary, and 
each sanctuary thronged with peaceful worshippers 
listening with rapture to that message, which the ears 
of the shepherds caught on the plains of Bethlehem; 
when we see every dwelling of man converted into a 
temple for the living God, with an altar erected, and 
the incense of devotion ascending inclouds as a grateful 
memorial to the mercy seat; when we see acopy of 
the sacred Scriptures in the possession of every family, © 
read with understanding by the parents, and repeated 
with ecstacies of joy by their babes and sucklings; 
when we see the obstinate and long infatuated Jew, 
the ruthless Siberian, the shivering Icelander, the sul- 
len Hindoo, the sottish Hottentot, and the roving in- 
habitant of our western woods, all reduced to habits 
of social and Christian order, loving God, loving each 
ether, basking under the mild beams of the Sun of 
Righteousness, and-exulting in the prospect of that glo- 
ry which shall be revealed. Yes, fellow worshippers, 
every obstacle, which lies in the way of the conver- 
sion of the nations, shall recede; every valley shall 
rise, every mountain shall sink, the crooked places 
shall be made strait, the rough places shall be made plain, 


27 


until the messenger of peace has trodden the remot- 
est limits of the earth, and has announced to the mil- 
lions, who are scattered over its extended surface, that 
unto them a Saviour is born, even Christ Jesus the Lord. 
And when this mighty, magnificent work shall be ac- 
complished; when the voice shall re-echo “from moun- 
tain top to mountain top,” until it has reached the 
boundaries of the everlasting hills, that the Lord God 
Omnipotent reigneth; more especially, amidst the glo- 
ries of the Judgment day, when the trump of the Archan- 
gel shall sound, and the nations of the redeemed shall 
assemble from the four winds of heaven, how must it 
swell our anthem of praise to recollect, that we had 
been employed even as humble instruments in promot- 
ing these interesting results! With what transports of 
joy, probably with mutual congratulations, we shall 
recollect the scenes of this evening, when, from differ- 
ent sections of country, and bearing different names 
as Christians, we convened in this temple to deliber- 
ate on the concerns of our Master’s kingdom. 

Amen, even so, come, Lord Jesus; come quickly, and 
let the whole earth be filled with thy glory. 


4 Snail aeboede, a 

. migdybeyt) SEP the fundamen tisthb 

bah, "vlna ego 

“bu ona ns iaeiatok A 

0 othbinsts shear watebibene rdf 

need epigl rv Bgemncpenidee 

ashton crawls ppl Me \hwyes episal 

ocd Leura aati camel sebitle poeta : 

Bid «lak ho boeaalg ‘nian hro canvas 
ssnohiery te wie Ng syoketeatiian esl» htt 

Jddhodoc scanetiwtceds Sadhahidi aie i 

ty Rot cahy rene acta gee a 

dciekeyerde h! bqetthnaeety hh iva! ‘prep tn 

LHe ekoeden weber: olden 

Ataeas corps da clwa sO shay lan-wey 

Hula oteheted pea ghed, dauhan aim 
MO oe 
anna ioe Wb gpindsdedate quinnie a0 

~adddieh: ch glepemeratdhd tienes. 196.900 ce 

savbortrkatghedil cmnylaat > y 

bao ovExerpwcut gant alroile (e@ Aceh 

' wo at Ay. Sate Tao? foal 


yt tee, a 


iy TOMA Shel SP WP 


é 
y P| 
Ac , 
mk it ete RI RR 
ie Re a a oe 
; r eed 


’ By ; 7 2 ie bg 
by adel, Mane alee velba % 


